Safe Biochemical Testing of COVID-19 Samples: A Clinical Lab Perspective

Safe Biochemical Testing of COVID-19 Samples: A Clinical Lab Perspective

Pratibha Misra, Kapil Bhatia, Rakhi Negi, Bhasker Mukherjee, MK Sibin

The current COVID-19 pandemic has not only greatly burdened healthcare system globally but also exposed the medical andparamedical staff to risk of infection. Although the major mode of transmission of this highly infectious disease is via close contactwith an infected person i.e., droplet infection due to coughing/sneezing and aerosol generation, few research articles have shownpresence of SARS-CoV-2 in blood and serum. This poses a potential risk to health care professionals who are handling thesesamples. Once the suspected/confirmed case of COVID-19 is admitted in the hospital setting, it requires a battery of clinicalchemistry investigations. Laboratory has a vital and indispensable role to play in the management of COVID-19 patients as severalbiochemical markers are used for prognostication as well as monitoring and guiding treatment in the critical patients. Hence, thisevaluation was undertaken to have protocols based on robust recommendations and guidelines to be followed while handling thepotentially infective samples in the clinical laboratories in order to ensure safety of the staff. However, these recommendations arebased on the limited and rapidly evolving knowledge available at the moment and hence need to be reviewed periodically.

2020

Pandemic, SARS-CoV-2, analysis, Sodium hypochlorite, sample processing, biochemical investigations

10.7860/JCDR/2020/44996.13878

Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research

JCDR Research and Publications Private Limited

Medicine